SUPERMARKET giant Tesco has unveiled a fresh bid for a controversial new store in Maidstone.

It is the latest attempt in a five-year saga to bring a Tesco superstore to Loose Road in the face of fierce opposition from residents.

The proposal is largely unchanged from last year, when Tesco revealed plans for a store and a 326-space car-park next to and behind Kent Fire Brigade's training centre.

As a result, the Tesco at Farleigh Hill, Tovil, would be downsized to an Express store and the rest of the site would be used for housing.

Revisions to the plan include an updated study into the need for a supermarket and an increase to the number of proposed houses at the Tovil site from 23 to 28.

Residents claim Loose Road would be unable to cope with the increased traffic caused by the supermarket.

It is estimated by Tesco that between 200 and 300 people would use the Loose Road store every hour, from a catchment area that includes Maidstone, Harrietsham, Staplehurst, Coxheath, Sutton Valence, Marden, Yalding and Barming.

Loose Road resident Marguerite Hart, 73, who has organised petitions against the plan, said: "The traffic is going to be horrendous. Our main objection is that the road will not cope. There will be shoppers 24 hours a day as well as delivery lorries. We have trouble getting out of our drive as it is."

Robert Cooper, owner of Cooper's Newsagent in Loose Road, said: "The effect on the immediate area could be devastating. When Asda opened on Blue Bell Hill it had a dramatic effect on traffic and that is on a dual carriageway."

He added: "Some people think my shop will benefit from the passing trade but if people are fighting through traffic they are less likely to make an extra stop at my shop."